


The Great Divide Chapter 8: Follow Me

by Antigravity_Carnivore



Series: The Great Divide [8]
Category: Breaking Benjamin (Band), STARSET (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Dark, Alternate Universe - Future, Alternate Universe - Rock Band, Alternate Universe - Science Fiction, Angst, Computers, Fluff and Angst, Gay, Gay Male Character, Gay Sex, Inspired by Music, M/M, Male Homosexuality, Music, Science Fiction, Science Fiction & Fantasy, starset
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-15
Updated: 2017-07-15
Packaged: 2018-12-02 07:52:11
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11504961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Antigravity_Carnivore/pseuds/Antigravity_Carnivore
Summary: Back on Prox. The invasion begins as Thomas Bell appears with the Carnivores to destroy the Messengers.





	The Great Divide Chapter 8: Follow Me

The Great Divide Chapter 8 Follow Me 

The door burst open with a loud bang, and two armed Carnivores entered, causing me to scramble to my feet. The effects of the drug that Brock had injected me with had not quite worn off, and I was left dazed and struggling to regain my senses. The room pitched and turned as I clutched onto the side of the couch for support. My eyes couldn’t focus and my head throbbed. They were on me in a matter of moments, like a pack of rabid dogs. I tried to move past them, to escape to the door, but I knew that it was hopeless. I couldn’t fight back against their genetically amplified muscles and instant reflexes. As I stumbled back onto my feet, one of them grabbed me by the neck; it’s clawed hand gripping me and squeezing, cutting off the supply of oxygen to my brain momentarily as the other one roughly took hold of my arms and painfully twisted them behind my back, binding them with some sort of glowing electronic device which wouldn’t allow any movement. My shoulders screamed out in pain. The voice in my head came too late, and I failed to heed the warning in time, now I was their prisoner. One of the Carnivores moved toward the door, motioning for me to follow, as the other one pushed me forward, nearly toppling me over and I had no choice but to obey.

They led me out of Ben’s office and down the corridors of the rebel’s base which was now in a terrible state of disrepair. Nearly every one of the doors that lined the halls had been forced open, or dismantled, and the room inside ransacked and trashed. Raw, exposed electrical wires dropped down from the ceiling overhead, occasionally producing a bright spark that would illuminate the otherwise dark corridor. Something terrible happened here while I was unconscious. At my feet were discarded papers, notes, articles of clothing; and dull crimson smears that trailed off in various directions. At first I thought it was pools of oil or some other thick vicious liquid, but upon closer examination, I knew what it was. I shuddered. What had happened here? Where were the Messengers? How long had I been unconscious? My mind raced with question after question and I started to feel a real sense of danger now.

Reaching the end of the hall, away from Ben’s office quarters, they led me to the main control room, which I had been in to watch the surveillance footage of the intruder earlier and pushed me inside. I stumbled through the entryway to see most of the monitors still operational, but offline, displaying nothing but screens of static. They forced me into a chair and made sure that my wrists were tightly secured behind me and left me alone. I glanced around and saw that this room, just like the rest had been completely trashed. Some of the panels had large black marks on them, almost as it if they had been fired upon by a weapon of some sort, and chairs had been knocked over and discarded, obvious signs of a struggle. I looked toward the few monitors that still were in working order and shuddered, remembering the footage that I watched of Brock infiltrating the base; I felt hurt and betrayed. He had managed slip in, almost completely unnoticed and disarm the shields power supply, with the full intention and motive to help Thomas. My heart sunk to know that he chose to side with him, but I had given him every reason to turn his back on me. Ben warned me that Brock was the enemy now, but I couldn’t believe him. I wouldn’t. The things that I had been shown about the past only added to the grief and heartache that I felt towards him, and I couldn’t help but to wonder if there was any way to say how sorry I was. I still loved him dearly, but now, were we truly past the point of no return? 

I wiggled my fingers behind my back, trying to bring some feeling into my numb shoulders when the door opened again and the two Carnivores entered, led by Thomas Bell, dressed in his full F.E.C. body armor, emblazoned with their black and white logo and adored with all sorts of patches, carrying a smug look on his face. I scowled at him, I wanted to jump out of my chair and snap his neck. “You murderous son of a bitch!” I shouted.

He came to stand in front of me, casually leaning against the control panel and gave me a cold stare. It was perfect and flawless, showing absolutely no compassion or sympathy. I felt as though I were looking into the eyes of a predator. “If I were you, Bates, I’d choose my words carefully, because you’re not going to have very many of them left. Do you really want to waste them on needless insults?”

“Thomas, when I get out of here, I am going to kill you for what you did to Ben! I don’t care who you are around here, or about the F.E.C., or about how the Messengers kept saying what a good, kind hearted soul you are. All I see is that you are a heartless monster who deserves to die.” I lowered my voice a little and looked him straight in the eyes. “HE TRUSTED YOU!” I could feel the anger and rage bubbling up from inside of me. “He felt alone and vulnerable, he reached out for you when he was hurting and full of pain, and you betrayed him!”

He shrugged. “Your threats mean nothing to me, Bates. You are a worthless individual who doesn’t even belong here. Yes, I know all about the past.” He leaned forward slightly. “I’ve seen every memory played out before me between you and him, and you know what I think? I think that it was not Benjamin who corrupted you back then, but you who corrupted him. All this man wanted was someone to love and share his life with so that he would never be lonely again, and what did you do? You denied him the thing that he needed the most, one of the most basic emotions in the entire world, love. It shocked me to see how you treated him, turning him away time after time again, leading him into thinking that there might be something there between you, when all the while you were only thinking about your greedy little self. So don’t go accusing me of being a traitor and betraying him, because you’ve done it too.” He paused for a moment, and casually leaned against the control panel. “In the end isn’t that what life is all about, using people so that we can fill the empty spaces in our hearts from being brought into this world alone? We fall in love and devote our lives to a person because we need to feel as though we are part of something, but the end, we’re all taking advantage of others. Benjamin is such an intense, passionate person who needs someone who can take him in and give him exactly what he needs, without constant doubt or question. This person is me. I belong at his side, not you!”

“He doesn’t love you; you betrayed him and joined with the F.E.C.! Ben wanted to save you, and save all the people here on Prox. You’ve destroyed everything Thomas. How can he love someone who only wants to bring about death and destruction?”

Thomas still kept the same, cold expression. Looking at him, I could see nothing of the kind-hearted man that the Messengers all spoke of, all I could see in his eyes was frigid, calculating wickedness. “Let me show you something that might just change your mind, Dustin.” With the push of a few buttons, one of the dark monitors flashed into life and he stepped out of the way to let me see it. I watched as the image of Ben’s private quarters flashed onto the screen in full color. I glanced at Thomas who smiled wickedly at me and nodded. “That’s right, thanks to the wonders of technology and some very skilled individuals; I’ve had a front row seat for everything….” He paused and smirked at me. “…and everyone who has gone down in that room. It’s been bugged and monitored for some time before you were brought back here. That’s how we were able to discover that the innocent Thomas and Ben were lovers. The F.E.C. had been watching this little thing turn into a relationship. This information proved most valuable for driving a wedge between them. We knew that with the proper bait, he’d be ours. Which is why Thomas became so fascinated by the visor. It was planted to draw him in, and he fell for it.” I wanted to slap that smile right off his face. Thomas was so smug, so sure of his words that it made me hate him even more. I didn’t know how much longer I could idly sit and put up with him.

“Watch.” He said, and I turned my attention back to the screen in time to see Ben standing at the window, looking out to the horizon as I had seen him do so many times before. He loved watching the rain and wind, but this time, I felt as though he wasn’t being far off and distant, he was looking for something, waiting, watching with a very sad look on his face. What was he searching for? Thomas entered the frame of the video and I wanted to look away, but still kept my eyes trained on the monitor. He joined Ben at the window and they talked for long moments, in hushed tones, too low for the microphone to pick up any clear words. Eventually, I saw Ben reach out and draw Thomas into his arms. Thomas looked a little startled and apprehensive, but soon his body relaxed and he slid his arms around Ben’s strong back and tilted his face upwards. This was the real Thomas, the one who fell in love with Benjamin, the one that I didn’t know; he was a stranger to me. They gazed deeply into each others eyes and then their lips met. I shuddered, and looked away for a moment. I knew how those lips tasted, I knew how they felt; I knew what it was like to melt in his embrace. I wanted that to be me. I was the only person in Benjamin’s life, I had to be. All those words he spoke to me, all that pain and grief, sacrificing himself for me so long ago, it had to mean something. He wouldn’t just cast me aside. Noticing that I had turned away, Thomas walked over to me and grabbed a handful of my hair, yanking my head back up and forward. “No looking away! This is the best part; you won’t want to miss this.” I winced and shuddered, seeing the images on the screen of Ben starting to remove Thomas’s clothing. His fingers slipped across his chest with ease, and caressing the hard muscles one by one. Bit by bit each article of clothing material fell away, until he stood there in front of Ben, naked and exposed. At first, he seemed a bit shy and cautious, clumsy and uncertain of what to do next, but I could see Ben’s lips moving, whispering to him, guiding him. Whatever was said, reassured Thomas, he relaxed and then with great daring his hands were all over Ben’s body, touching, caressing, exploring. Fueled by those whispered words, Thomas gained confidence enough to allow himself to give in and enjoy the sheer pleasure of the moment. He seemed hungry, anxious, and a little desperate. They kissed again and I saw him drop his hand down between Ben’s legs and grasp at the thick shaft of flesh there, his fingers fondling and grasping at it over the thin material of his uniform pants. Reaching up, Ben took hold of Thomas’s face and held his head still for a moment, keeping their lips tightly pressed together. The expression on Ben’s face was one of sorrow and sadness instead of lust and ecstasy. I could almost feel the anguish and heartache through the monitor. He was hurting. Why? What was going through his mind at this point? He moved his hands down to over Thomas's shoulders and pushed him away for a moment and turned around, rejecting him. His shoulders dropped, why the apprehension? Was Ben suddenly ashamed? Why did he hesitate? Thomas reached out and gently touched the small of Ben’s back, swirling his fingers along his spine and spoke something to him that I couldn’t quite hear and he turned back around. Ben’s expression had changed to one of sympathy and compassion. There was suddenly so much concern and empathy there that seeing it broke my heart. I had to know what was being said! Thomas dropped down to his knees and unbuckled Ben’s pants, his fingers shaking as he fumbled with the metal belt buckle. Ben made no effort to stop him, but instead leaned back slightly and looked up, keeping his eyes trained on the ceiling. For a moment, I thought I caught sight of a bit of moisture building up in the corner of Ben’s eye; was he crying? Peeling away the layers of fabric, Thomas eased his cock out and took it in, devouring every inch of him without hesitation into his mouth. Ben closed his eyes and drew in his bottom lip, catching it between his teeth and biting down on it, his breath ragged and shallow. Thomas curled his tongue around the shaft and leaned in, taking the thick cock as far down his throat as he could go, fully intent on pleasing his partner. Trying his best, his movements were awkward and uncoordinated, and he had to hold onto Ben’s leg to support himself. Ben reached down and placed his hands on Thomas’s head, guiding him in his movements while running his fingers through the soft, brown curls of his hair, thrusting his hips in time with the movement of Thomas’s mouth. I could feel beads of sweat start to bead up on my skin, and I shivered in the cold room. Watching his made me feel uncomfortable and uneasy. I just wanted it to stop.

In a few moments that felt like years, Ben unexpectedly pulled Thomas roughly back up to his feet and walked away from him, hiding his face from the concealed camera. I saw his hand go to his forehead for a moment. Thomas walked over to him, softly speaking with inaudible words, and then started to pick up his clothes with great haste, keeping his eyes away from Ben. Ben hesitated, almost as if struggling with some inner turmoil then reached out and took hold of Thomas's arm, pulling him back and holding him in place for a moment. I knew what it was like to be held like that. When Benjamin held you still, you didn’t move. End of story. He leaned down and kissed him again, their lips and bodies fit together like pieces of a puzzle. Benjamin reached out and drew the curtains closed, and pushed him against the wall, with an almost brutal force. Thomas grabbed handfuls of the thick, black velvety fabric, that covered the window, clutching onto it tightly as Ben took him from behind, without warning, driving his cock far into him, penetrating his body with great force and speed that Thomas’s eyes were welling up with tears from the pain. He reached around, trembling, his fingers wanting to hold onto some part of Ben’s body for support but instead, Ben grabbed his hands and forced them up over his head, keeping Thomas pinned down against the thick glass of the window while he proceeded to thrust his shaft deeper and deeper into him. Thomas’s lithe body was repeatedly shoved against the glass with a lustful, brutal force that frightened me a little. I was grateful that I couldn’t see Ben’s face. I didn’t want to. I sat there in my chair, my own hands bound and tied behind me, forced to watch this act as it played out on the screen in front of me. I felt sick. My stomach threatened to let go at any moment. I didn’t want to see any of this.

After several minutes, and he was completely satiated, Ben released Thomas who then slid down to the thick, lush carpeting on the ground of the office, panting and gasping for breath. Ben came to sit next to him, spreading his legs, and pulled Thomas’s naked body between them, pushing his head down to rest against his chest. Running his fingers through Thomas’s soft curls, they kissed and gently caressed one another; it was a moment of pure bliss and serenity between the two of them. Ben spoke quietly to him, occasionally kissing him and keeping his arms tightly locked around Thomas’s body protectively. There was no way he was going to let go. Looking at the digital image on the monitor, I saw that there was something there that I had never seen before. It was a kind, passionate, devoted light in Thomas’s eyes. When he looked up at Ben, my heart broke. This wasn’t some need to fulfill some primitive carnal desire for sex, or even willingness to please… this was love. Pure, unadulterated, innocent love. This was the Thomas everyone was talking about. The one who lived his life in service to free those taken by the F.E.C., The one who had unselfishly gave these people a safe haven, a home to call their own after escaping the terrible tyranny. I had finally seen a glimpse of what he was like.

I didn’t want to see this. I closed my eyes and held them shut until I could see stars. Thomas gave my head a quick jerk back and came to lean in close, resting his cheek against mine. “Open your eyes and watch this, watch the man that ‘loves you’ completely forget about you. It’s all there, in black and white. Look at how ‘they’ are together. This is how things should be; this is how things WILL be. He loves Thomas, he loves ME.”

“No!” I shouted.

Thomas sneered at me. “Maybe this isn’t to your liking then?” He released me and went over to the control panel, switching off the images in front of me and punched a few buttons. I felt relieved. Brock had told me that Thomas and Ben were lovers, but until this point, I refused to admit that it was anything but an innocent, platonic love. I was wrong. Seeing them there like that on the screen broke my heart and robbed me of all rational thoughts. I lowered my head and Thomas started to speak again. “Now this bit of footage, you’ve got to see. It’s quite entertaining, really. After all, you are the main star!” I looked up as he hit play and there was the night that Ben and I spent alone together, making love under the cover of a sea of virtual stars. Ben’s voice came over the speakers, reciting the lyrics to Telescope.

“Please.” I begged. Turn it off.

Thomas cocked his head to the side in mock interest. “Hmm? Oh right you’ve seen this bit before, forgive me, no one likes reruns. Here let me just forward to the part that you DIDN’T see.” I looked away as he moved the footage forward, stopping it at the moment right before dawn when we were both asleep in each others arms. The room was dark and silent; Ben and I were entwined in each others bodies on the bed, sleeping soundly. I watched as each breath he took made his chest fall and rise. He was so magnificent, so beautiful, even through the lens of a camera. I looked from the video feed to Thomas who was positively giddy for some reason. “Wait, you will see.” He said and pointed back at the monitor. As I slept next to Ben, I saw him stir slightly, and then carefully slip away from me. Rising to his feet, he made his way to the foot of the bed and retrieved the clothing that had been discarded there in our lustful haste. Dressing quickly, he fumbled his way through the darkness, and into the next room where his desk was. Using his hands to guide him, he sat down on the chair and brought his fingers to the keyboard. His sightless eyes prevented him from seeing the glowing icons on the screen, but he knew where every one of them were and could access them with ease. Touch typing commands out with the keys, he inputted a code into the computer and sat back in his chair, waiting for the series of beeps to signal that the connection had been made. Soon, the room filled with a soft white light, and a voice came over the speakers.

“You’ve got some balls calling me, Benjamin. Especially right now. ” Brock sighed. “Where is he?”

Ben’s sightless gaze went over to the sleeping area. “He’s… safe. Brock listen, I need your help.”

I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. Thomas walked over and switched the monitor off. “So your lover, the Commander of the Messengers, Benjamin Burnley ratted you and everyone else out. After he fucked you, he contacted Brock, who then transmitted all the stolen information about the base to the F.E.C. and ordered a strike against the Messengers. Brock managed to infiltrate the base and lower the shields, just in time for the Carnivores to arrive and begin their slaughter. It was the perfect opportunity for me to step forward and take control of the troops, which I did with great delight. It felt wonderful, ordering those beasts to rip apart every single one of those rebels that had been riding on my good nature and sympathy for years. 

“Thomas, you’re insane.” I whispered. “I don’t care what that visor did to you, or even if there is any of that person left behind, but you are going to pay for what you’ve done.” I could feel my hands balling up into fists, bound behind the chair. I wanted to lean forward and punch him.

“I may have wanted this destruction, but I am not the one who ultimately pushed the button to bring these events to life. You’ve seen the carnage out in the hall there? I want you to remember every single bit of that, because you are the reason for it. It’s your fault those people are dead. Dustin, if you haven’t realized it by now, you’re the catalyst that started all of this. Had you not come here, these events would of never had been set in motion.” Thomas motioned and the other Carnivores took their positions on both sides of the chair, I felt uneasy. “But enough of that for now. Time to move on to other things. Do you know how hard it was to find you, Bates? We had to thoroughly search every single area in the base before we found you, tucked away and napping in the secluded office, right under our nose. Now that we have you, you have information that I need, and you are going to tell me, if you don’t, I will bring you the worst pain you’ve ever felt in your entire life.”

I shot him a defiant look. “Whatever it is that you want from me, Thomas, you won’t get it.”

Thomas ignored my threat. “You were the last person to see Benjamin.” He leaned over my chair, putting his hands over the arms and glaring at me. “He’s injured. He needs me. Tell me where he is.”

My heart jumped. They didn’t have him! I was instantly relieved. I thought back to the last moment when I saw him, in his private quarters, giving instructions to the Messengers to seek out the intruder in the base, he sent me to review the footage and then I was to meet him back in his office, but when I got there, he was gone, and I ran into Brock who drugged me. I didn’t know how long I had been out for, but he had left me there on the couch, with the door locked and firmly sealed. I had been there, out of harm’s way while the Carnivores attacked, oblivious to it all. Had Brock saved me? Had he taken Ben as well? I lifted my head up and met his eyes. “I don’t know where he is.”

Shaking his head, Thomas took a step away from me. “I knew you were going to give me trouble, Bates.” He made a signal to one of the Carnivores. “Remove his shirt.” Reaching out with it’s twisted, clawed hand, one of the creatures grabbed hold of the thin fabric and gave my shirt a harsh tug, the front panel buttons immediately gave way, and a wave of cold washed over me as my naked chest was exposed. Thomas took the glasses off my face and put them on his, looking down at me over the colored plastic edges. “Again I ask. Tell me where Benjamin is.”

I replied with one word. “No.” He didn’t deserve any others.

Thomas glanced at one of the Carnivores and then it moved in front of me. “Dustin Bates—I’ve seen all of your memories, lived through each and every one of your experiences and I know the things that you fear. One in particular seemed to shock and frightens you more than others. Remember when Benjamin first came to you, made you that wonderful, little offer? Of course you do, he seduced you with his words and his body. You were so defiant then, refusing to admit to yourself that maybe you wanted him just as much as he wanted you. That’s what the entire story was about, wasn’t it? The simple fact that you had feelings for a man and couldn’t cope is what dragged you down into insanity. All Ben did was open your eyes and make you see it. Such a pity. But I digress. Can you remember the feeling you felt in your heart when he placed his fingers on your naked chest for the first time?” As he spoke, the Carnivore placed its gnarled clawed hand on the center of my chest and arched its fingers, digging its razor sharp talons lightly into my skin and started to push in a grim mockery of my memory. Five points of pain shot through my body and I tried my best to keep from whimpering. “It’s such an exquisite pain, isn’t it? Ben did this to you, when he ripped your heart out in so many ways, and you let him. Why do you want to be part of a life like that, being constantly tortured mentally and emotionally? I can help release his hold on you, Dustin. I can take him away from you and give him what he so desperately needs. Did you not see how easily it was for him to move on and be with another person? He doesn’t really love you; he’s using you to fill the empty space in his heart. You can be free to love anyone that you choose to. I know there is someone else you are drawn to, I can feel it.” I started to shake, and tremble in fear. My heart beat rapidly. He knew about Brock! “The visor may not have been able to access that part of your memories; there are other ways of finding it out. The F.E.C. had their own limited resources, I do not.” Thomas reached around the panel to bring out the familiar visor and present it to me to see with a dramatic flourish. “I have made a few changes to the operating system. This device will now be able to mine any specific bit of knowledge that you have tucked away inside of your head and retrieve it for me, without care or concern for preserving biological matter. In essence, it will drag these repressed or blocked memories out of you, or kill you trying. It doesn’t have to be this way, Bates. I am prepared to send you out of here, back to where you belong without damaging you or revealing the identity of your other lover. You can rest assured that if I find out who this person is, I will find them, and string them up, and order the Carnivores to remove all the skin from their body, inch by inch with only their claws and teeth, right in front of you. ” Almost as if on cue, the Carnivore flexed its fingers, driving it's claws deeper into my chest, and I could feel the blood start to trickle down my torso. “It’s your choice, Bates.”

“Fuck you!” I shouted. The Carnivore’s claw penetrated the skin of my flesh deeper now, and the agony was almost unbearable. “You aren’t Thomas! You are some pathetic F.E.C. brainwashed, twisted version of him, trying to slip into a life that is not yours. Ben will never love you, because you’re not the same person, and never will be again. That visor screwed up your brain, and I don’t even think you know who you are anymore!” Sinking in a few inches, I felt the talons hit my chest bone and hard surface of my ribs and I screamed out. The blood was pouring out of the wounds now at an alarming rate, and I fought to keep my head up, the last thing I wanted to do was pass out. I gave Thomas a look of defiance and he motioned for the Carnivore, who then started to twist its claw like a corkscrew into my chest, ripping the skin in huge gouges in five different places. My heart was beating rapidly and frantically, increasing my blood pressure, and it felt like it was about to explode. I could hear Thomas still yelling at me, demanding the info, but it sounded far off and distant now. All I could hear was the rattling of my labored breath in my lungs. I had to hold on, for Ben.

Thomas paced the room like a caged animal. Not happy with my silence or unwillingness to cooperate. “Bates, tell me where Benjamin is.”

“No.” I whispered, my head leaning down. Flecks of blood formed on my lips, mixing with saliva that dripped onto the floor as I spoke. “You can do whatever you want to me; rip my heart out if that’s what you are going after. Ben is mine. He will always be. I won’t let you have him. You are a maniac.”

Sighing, Thomas pushed the Carnivore out of the way. The creature slid its claws out of the wounds and I was hit with an intense, crushing pain in my chest. It moved its arm back and I could see the droplets of blood drip down from the claws onto the concrete floor. I watched the light flicker and reflect upon them with a dull interest. It was beautiful. “Do you know what your one flaw is, Bates?” Once again, I remained silent. It was difficult to concentrate and his words floated around and eluded me. The blood loss was starting to take its toll. “The thing that completely ruins you is your inability to admit that you’re human, just like the rest of us. When you are angry, you deny the rage inside of you. When you are feeling lustful, you refuse to satiate the desire. These things will be your downfall.” Thomas put his hand on my chest and pushed my body backwards against the chair. The front flaps of my shirt, saturated with blood fell open, revealing the horrendous wounds in all their grisly glory. He took a moment to admire his handiwork, and then grabbed the visor, now glowing with that all too familiar orchid glow and held it out in front of me, pushing a few buttons to program it. “Because you refuse to tell me where Benjamin is, I am going to take the information from you, and after I have that, then I am going to find out who your lover is, and track him down as well. I really wish you hadn’t pushed me to this, but I see no other alternative. ” Thomas knelt down beside me and put his lips up against my ear. I shuddered. “Once I find him. I am going to do things to them that could only be described as horrific, sadistic and brutal.” He dropped his hand down over my chest, smearing the warm blood over his fingers and then cupped my chin in the palm of his hand, turning my face to his.” You said that you wanted revenge on me for what I had done to Ben?” I felt his fingers slide over my cheek, warm and sticky with blood. “What about for what I am about to do -to him, hmm? You took something away from me that I cared about; I am going to do the same to you as well. I will find your lover, and I will act out every sick twisted desire on him that I can. Remember what you just saw on the video? What Ben did to Thomas, I will do that to the one that you love, only it won’t be as restrained. Will he scream out your name as I am shoving myself deep inside of him, penetrating and ripping him apart from the inside?” 

I closed my eyes, listening to Thomas’s words, my entire body shaking from the blood loss and his plans for Brock. I felt sick to my stomach. I couldn’t let him go through that again, it would kill him. 

Thomas started speaking again, his voice so sinister and wicked. “Then when I break him, have him begging at my feet for mercy, I will call in the Carnivores and have them finish him off.” He slowly stood back up and gazed down at me. “They have such an appetite when not fed for weeks.” He finished speaking and gripped the visor tightly. I could see the intricate etchings on the inside of the glass gleaming brightly in the dim light, along with the tip of the needles set on each end, poised and ready to be clamped onto the skull. Using all my strength, I twisted my head to the side, in an effort to move way, but he grabbed a handful of my hair again and pulled my head back. “No, we won’t have that, Bates.” He grinned at me. I heard him whisper. “Hold still.”

Suddenly the door burst open and one of the F.E.C. scientists rushed in, looking flustered. “Mr. Bell, sir… there is an urgent matter that requires your attention.”

In all my pain, something odd caught my attention. The man did not call Thomas by a formal, or military title, but by Sir. It seemed wrong. Thomas snapped at him. “I am busy, what is it?”

“Sir there is reports of a massive rebel force assembling in the North. Our radar shows that there must be hundreds of them. “

Thomas sighed. “So, send out the bloody Carnivores, they will rip through them in a matter of minutes.“

The scientist looked like he was almost ready to burst into tears. “That’s what the problem is, the Carnivore assault troops aren’t responding to commands, we’ve tried every bit of coding that we have and they are unresponsive.”

Thomas looked at me and then sighed. “Very well. You two take Bates down to a holding cell and leave him there.” He placed the visor back down on the control panel and hesitated for a moment. Staring at the device for long moments, he returned to me, and knelt down. My eyes met his and for a moment I saw something there. He suddenly looked scared and very frightened, even a bit disorientated. For a moment, I could have sworn that he was looking at me, pleading with me for help. His face softened and he reached forward, almost gingerly to touch the wounds on my chest, as a doctor would, then immediately withdrew. The moment passed as quickly as it came. “Bates. This is your last chance. Think about what I’ve said.” Quickly walking past me and the Carnivores, he followed the scientist out and they pulled me to my feet. “Toss him in with the doctor, maybe they can patch him up until I am ready for him again.”

I was fading in and out of consciousness as they brought me to a large room on the lower levels of the base with several cells fashioned with electronic locks. I stumbled past each of the side rooms and saw several of the Messengers crowded inside, looking bloody and injured. They had not all been slaughtered, but instead captured and herded into the rooms like cattle. I had a sinking suspicion that they were being kept alive for something other than hostage status. The Carnivores dragged me to the end of the hall, and tossed me into one of the cells that was a little less crowded than the others. I landed against the cold hard floor with a painful thud, my cheek resting against the unforgiving concrete and lay there, having not the strength or energy to move a muscle. My eyes were tired and heavy; all I wanted to do was sleep. I watched as they re-energized the electronic door lock and made their way back up the hall, their heavy black boots stomping ominously with each step they took. I could hear some whispers from the back of the cell, and then felt someone gently touch my arm and roll me over onto my back. I struggled to pry my eyes open to see Lizzie and Dr. Browning kneeling over me, and a wave of relief washed over me. They were speaking to me, but they sounded far off and distant. The room was spinning and it took every bit of strength I had to keep breathing. Lizzie carefully peeled away the front part of my white shirt that was hanging open, completely soaked with dried blood, which had started to coagulate and stick to the open wounds. I let out a cry as she pulled the fabric back and the bleeding started again. I heard Browning say something about getting the bleeding stopped as soon as possible but I didn’t care. All I wanted to do is sleep, and that is exactly what I did.

I awoke to find myself in the darkened cell, on the cold hard floor with Lizzie lying next to me, curled up into a tight ball. I tried to sit up, but the sudden shift made my chest hurt, instinctively, I reached up and touched the layers of shredded fabric that had been crudely tied together to form a makeshift bandage across my chest. Some blood had seeped through, but for the most part, the crisis was over. I coughed a little, and winced, my lungs not quite prepared for any physical exertion quite yet. Lizzie woke up and rubbed her eyes, giving me a pleasant smile. “Mr. Bates, please relax the sutures are very crude and they might not hold.” Placing her hand on my chest, she helped me sit up slightly and I leaned my back against the wall. I looked around at the other people in the cell, all members of the Messengers; wounded and injured as well, most of them sleeping, including Doctor Browning. I pointed to him. 

“Is he alright? What happened here Lizzie?” I asked.

Not wanting to wake up anyone, she moved closer to me and I could feel her small body shaking. The holding cells offered no comfort of any kind, no heating, no cooling, just a place to keep a person segregated from others for a short period of time. “Dr. Browning? Yeah he’s fine; he stayed up all night watching over you. I finally managed to convince him to get some sleep. He does have a few moments of compassion.” She looked around the cell towards the others with a sad expression on her face. “After the intruder got in, the power was cut and it became mass chaos. For a while, our shields and monitoring systems held up, but not long after, we lost everything. It was if someone flipped a switch and the entire base went dark. That’s when they found us. Somehow, the F.E.C. received notification of our location and sent in the Carnivores. They managed to breach our defenses within minutes, and take out our troops…and they were led by Thomas, he just came out of nowhere.” The tone in her voice changed, it quivered a little as she spoke and was laced with extreme sadness. “He had been here the entire time, waiting for the perfect moment to step forward and take charge. He ordered the Carnivores to rip apart anyone who was armed, or took action against them. We lost most of our men that way. They were brutal in their assault of the innocent.” She lowered her head; tendrils of her matted hair fell in front of her face. “Those who chose not to fight back were corralled in here, but not without being beaten first, and we have been ever since.”

“How long?” I asked.

She looked up at me, confused. “Excuse me?”

“How long as it been since the base was taken over?” I asked, not quite wanting to know the answer. I had lost all sense of time, and reality. The more I struggled to understand, the harder it became.

Reaching over, she took hold of my wrist and took my pulse, giving me a cautious look. “One week.”

My jaw dropped. I looked her in disbelief. I could recall that after the power went out, I had returned to Ben’s office to find him, and ran into Brock there, who injected me with something, and I blacked out for an entire week. I shook my head; I didn’t think it would be possible. Why had he drugged me, and then sealed me inside of a locked room, only to be discovered by the Carnivores days later? He had the perfect opportunity to turn me into Thomas, and yet, he didn’t. Something told me that I only had pieces of the puzzle, jumbled bits of information that had to be put together, and the sooner the better.

Doctor Browning woke from his sleep and joined us, pausing to check on my wounds. “We thought we lost you, Bates. You suffered massive blood loss. It was touch and go there for a while.” Satisfied with his examination, he sat down on the opposite side of me keeping his eyes trained on me, a look of suspicion lingering on his face. “Carnivores don’t usually take prisoners, which leads us to believe that Thomas is keeping us all penned up in here for a reason. The majority vote is that he needs us for some specific purpose.”

“He’s looking for something.” Lizzie muttered. Doctor Browning shot her a brief, curt look and she fell back silent again. I disliked the way he commanded and scolded her, like a small child.

“Not something.” I added. “Someone.”

Lizzie’s eyes opened wide. “Commander Burnley! That’s who he is looking for! That’s why you were tortured!” Her voice lowered a bit as she started to think about this new bit of information. “That’s why we are all here; he’s going to torture each one of us until he gets the information that he needs.” She put her hand over her mouth. “Oh my god, what are we going to do? Thomas… poor Thomas, he’s got to be in so much pain. I wish there was a way that we could help him, he’s got to be so confused.”

The doctor shook his head. “Lizzie, there’s nothing we can do. Bell’s been completely brainwashed by the F.E.C., there’s no way to talk sense into him. He’s a maniac who murdered Dr. Wise and now he’s added torture and mass casualties onto his list. No. He needs to be stopped, the sooner the better. We’re basically at his mercy right now, unless someone gives up where Ben is hiding out.” His eyes fell on me in silent accusation.

I started to feel uncomfortable and uneasy with the direction this conversation was going. Browning was clearly looking to irritate me. Looking away from him, I tried my best to button up my bloodstained white shirt for just a little bit of human decency. “I don’t know where Ben is.” I said, flattening out the folds and slowly pulling myself to my feet. Lizzie stood up, trying to help me, but I pushed her away and used the wall for support. I wasn’t about to let this man talk down to me. “I was assaulted when it began. Someone dressed in F.E.C. gear hit me from behind and injected me with something that left me unconscious.” I felt Lizzie’s eyes on me suddenly. She knew something but was afraid to say. Brock had ordered her to dump Ben’s computer, he admitted that, and now I wondered what other instructions he had given her. Was she a threat? “When I woke up, the Carnivores were pounding down the door and took me to Thomas who did THIS to me trying to get information. So keep your accusations to yourself, Browning.”

Some of the other Messengers had started to wake up now and were paying close attention to the conversation. Browning made his way over to me. “It’s more than simply that, Bates. All I am saying is that before you got here, things were fine. Commander Burnley and Thomas made damn sure that we were all safe. Everyone was well protected and there were no incidents. Since you appeared out of nowhere and came miraculously out of your coma, everything has fallen apart. So yes, I am going to accuse you, and point fingers in your direction. Think about it, you are the one that started it all.”

I took a step in his direction, and waited. Browning was treading in dangerously shallow waters with me, his words mirroring Thomas’s own insane thoughts and I didn’t like it. 

Browning’s voice hung in the air. “You want to know what I really think.” He gestured around to the cells and the others who were listening. “None of this matters to you or Commander Burnley. This place, our freedom, these people, none of this matters to either of you, because you’re both greedy son of a bitches who have been using us to get what you want, and then toss us aside. The F.E.C., the rebellion, none of it matters as long as you can go off somewhere and fuck each other. Hell, I wouldn’t be surprised if he were here with us right now, you two would be in the corner sucking one another's dicks. Thomas was a good, decent man before. You’ve all perverted and twisted him, turning him into what he is now, so that’s right. I am saying it’s all your fault.” A wave of fury overcame me, balling my hand up into a tight fist; I threw a punch at his face, where it collided with his jaw with a resounding wet thud. He reeled back, stunned for a moment, and then spit out a mouthful of blood from where I had split his lip. Lizzie was at his side almost instantly. “You can hit me all you want, Bates, because you know it’s true. Don’t even try to deny it.”

“Stephen, stop!” Lizzie shouted. She brought a hand up to her forehead. “Why are you acting this way? We’re all in danger! Antagonizing people isn’t going to get us out of here! I think you both need to just shut up and calm down for a while. The enemy isn’t out there, it’s in here now.” Sighing, she pulled the doctor over to one of the far corners of the room, and I made my way to the front of the cell, coming to sit on the floor next to the door. My eyes peered out at all the other people in their cages as well, shoved in with four times as many bodies as we had. I felt bad for them. They were looking back at me, expectantly, but I had nothing to offer them. We were all in the same situation; no… mine was a little more dire. Thomas was convinced that I knew where Benjamin was, and I realized that there would be no way to stop him next time, no interruptions or diversions. He wouldn’t kill me, but he could bring me almost to the point of death, as the F.E.C. had done to me so many times before, and use that visor to tap into my brain and find out about Brock. I couldn’t let that happen. As I sat down on the cool, hard floor, I slid one of my hands into my pocket and the tips of my fingers touched something metal. Grasping hold of it, I realized that it was Ben’s wedding ring, a grim reminder of what could possibly be ahead of me. I missed him so much. So many months of heartache and loneliness had finally come to an end here on Prox. The planet was imperfect and broken, just like us, but it could still be home. I leaned my head back against the wall, remembering the subtle, tender feeling of Ben’s lips on mine, of that one single, beautiful night that I never wanted to end. I needed him so badly now. I wanted him to be my guide, my strength, and the courage that I needed. I couldn’t do it on my own. Slipping the wedding ring on my finger, I thought back to what I was shown about the past. Even in a different place, in a different time, I still couldn’t be with Ben. This was the only place where we could live out our lives in peace, and if I were to protect what I had with Ben that meant that I had to protect these people as well. Thomas turned his back on them when he had placed that visor on; he started a series of events in motion that could not be undone now. I knew that I had to fix things, make it right. Thinking about the visor, and Thomas’s words of how he ‘altered’ it, I knew that it had to be the key. The F.E.C. had my memories about Ben and me, but strangely enough, not Brock. Brock was part of the F.E.C. now, and had access to their massive database and partial control over some of the visors systems, could it be that he had found a way to protect all the memories inside my head that pertained to him so that he could move through their ranks unnoticed? That had to be it. Brock selectively blocked it all out to protect himself from being discovered, and if he knew how to manipulate the visor, then he could possibly have knowledge on how to reverse the effects as well. I knew it could be done, I had seen pages that I had written about it in the Prox novel that he handed me. There was a way out, but it all hinged on Brock, who probably hated me.

As I sat there, looking at all the helpless people around me, my mind was racing, trying to come up with a plan that could potentially set them free, but I knew that I didn’t have much information about this planet, the rebellion, or even the F.E.C. I needed help. Ben was missing, Thomas insane, Lizzie and Browning were unlikely to offer anything cohesive, and so I knew I was up against a wall. I let out a sigh, and flinched as a pain shot across my chest from the wounds inflicted by the Carnivore. I knew that there wasn’t much time before they would come for me again, so I had to act quickly. As fate would have it, the door on the opposite end of the hall slid open and one of the Carnivores stepped in, moving silently as he made his way down the hall of cells, almost looking like the angel of death, draped in flowing black robes, all he needed were a set of wings.

He was coming for me.

I didn’t say anything, or wake the others, I pulled myself to my feet slowly, and stood up as it came over to the door and hesitated in front of me. It was the middle of the night now, and everything was shrouded in shadows, I could have mistaken this thing to be the Monster, but now I knew that the ‘Monster’ was only inside my head, these things were flesh and blood. Reaching out, it tapped the button on the side of the door, and it slid open with a quiet whoosh. For a moment, I considered calling out to the others, as we could possibly gang up on it and take him down, but I knew it was a dangerous move to make. These creatures had been known to rip flesh off of bones with only their bare hands, so it would have ungodly, engineered superhuman strength. It was a chance I wasn’t willing to take. I would put myself in danger before any of them. I knew it was taking me back to Thomas, and I was going willingly. Whatever torture or brainwashing he would put me through, wasn’t enough to wipe the memories of Ben’s screams out of my head when that visor had been ripped off. I would not concede defeat; I wasn’t going to go down without a fight.

The Carnivore motioned for me to leave the cell, which I did, watching dully as he locked it again. I looked back over my shoulder for a moment at Doctor Browning and Lizzie sleeping, curled up on the floor. Browning was right; they were nothing but innocent bystanders in all of this. I had no right bringing them into my fight. The creature motioned for me to walk forward and I did so without struggle. As we walked down the blood stained corridors, my eyes fell on each spot, each drop of dried blood that I knew would never completely come clean. All this destruction, all the devastation was my fault. I didn’t ask to come here. All this guilt was so much to bare, my heart was breaking knowing that each of those stains was a life. I grasped my hands together in front of me, and stroked my finger over Ben’s wedding ring. The Carnivore had not bound my hands and I let the cool metal offer me a bit of comfort. Even though the initials were not mine carved into it, it offered me a bit of serenity, because I knew that Ben had worn it. He made a promise over this piece of metal, with his words and a kiss sealing the deal. I wanted it to be with me. Thomas threatened to send me back home, into that life where everyone was happy…everyone except for me. I considered it for a moment, not being responsible for anything there except for myself and my music was an intoxicating thought. Brock was happy, Ben… was happy. Even though his time was limited, I thought about how it would be wonderful to be back on tour with him again, even if it was only for short time. In those few weeks, I knew that we could make enough memories to last a lifetime. This was the fate that I was resigning myself to, and I was okay with it. Watching him die would be heartbreaking, but it would be better than handing him over to the insane Thomas here on Prox.

Walking down the hall, I looked up and noticed that we were not going in the direction of the command room at all, but instead to a remote part of the base that was in a state of disrepair. We walked for a very long time, and eventually reached an intersection. I stopped, not quite sure which direction to go in, and the Carnivore gave me a rough shove, and pointed to a rather nondescript secluded wooden door that was well concealed under a mass of construction materials. Curious, I stepped forward and pushed it open, thinking it odd that in this far, advanced place that there would be a section of the base that as primitive as this. The door creaked open and I stepped inside, there was nothing but darkness. Something didn’t feel right. The Carnivore entered behind me and slammed the door shut, bolting it behind him. In the darkness, I could smell the faint scent of sawdust and rot, and hear the dripping of water far off in the distance. “What’s going on here?” I asked, turning around in the inky blackness. I could just make out the sound of the Carnivores robes shifting, and he withdrew a long cylindrical shape from his pocket and smashed it against the wall. The room began to glow with a bright, incandescent light and I could see that this was more than just an ordinary room; it hid the entrance to a series of tunnels that led out and away from the base. It was a way to escape! The dripping water was the sound of condensation building up on the rocks that formed the natural tunnels ahead. I looked from the tunnel back to the Carnivore. “Why are you setting me free?” I asked.

Reaching up, the creature grabbed hold of the helmet, cowl and scarf it was wearing and pulled them off in one quick, fluid motion. My eyes widened. It was Brock. I couldn’t contain myself. I ran forward and wrapped my arms around his skinny body, leaning into him with such force that I thought he might fall over. I buried my face in the folds of fabric around his neck and closed my eyes and started sobbing. I expected him to push me away, but he didn’t. Instead, he slid his arms around my back and pulled me close, holding me tight against his chest. It felt wonderful to be this close to him again. I could hear his heart beating, the warmth from his skin, and it was almost too much.

“Brock, it’s really you, you came back for me.” I mumbled into his robes. I knew I was sounding like some pathetic, cheesy character in an angsty fan fiction, but I didn’t care. He was here now. 

He reached up and ran his fingers through my hair. “I never left you, Dustin.”

His words nearly brought me to my knees. Once again I started to feel weak and lightheaded. I blamed it on the blood loss. I did not release him, but instead held onto him more tightly. I couldn’t bring myself to let go. “Brock, I am so sorry! I am sorry for everything that has happened.” I gripped a handful of his uniform and clutched onto it tightly. “I never meant to hurt you; I am ashamed of what happened. I.. I..” I had to stop, for a moment completely overcome with emotions. “You have to believe me that it wasn’t me, I couldn’t stop the thing inside of my head from taking over.”

“Dustin, you did something to me that no one should ever have to go through. You took my dignity and self-worth away from me when you raped me.” He said with a cold tone. “The entire time it was happening, when you were violating me I kept telling myself not to cry out, don’t show emotion, just take it, because one way or another it will all be over soon.” He sighed and I felt his body quiver slightly, I knew that he going through the experience all over again. “You broke my body the moment when you first put a hand on me.”

I stood silent. I wouldn’t dare interrupt him. I needed to hear his words direct and unadulterated from his own lips.

“It’s not just the physical pain that hurt me, but mentally… you murdered me that night. I was already dead when you put your hands on my neck.” I shuddered at his words, I had always remembered the moment when I took his life from my viewpoint, but hearing him now speaking about it was almost more than I was prepared to deal with. “I couldn’t fight back against you, because you broke my spirit then. Now with body and spirit broken, what is left, really? Nothing. I lost it all, you took it away from me. I’ve only ever loved you.” He let go of me and pushed me away slightly so that he could look into my eyes. Oh god.. How beautiful he was. I couldn’t stop staring at him. He was so full of life! 

“Brock… I don’t know what to say…you have every right to hate me for what I did. I can’t use the Monster as my excuse, because I know that when it all comes down to it. I am the Monster. You can hate me if you want, if it makes you feel better. I understand why you joined the F.E.C. Now.”

He shook his head and gave me confidant smile. “I don’t hate you, Dustin. I accept and understand the fact that you couldn’t control it, Benjamin told me about everything that has happened. I need you to know that is all behind us now. We don’t ever have to go back to that life again. It’s dead and buried. I won’t ever forget what happened, but I can forgive you.”

I smiled at him and nodded. I felt as though a huge weight had been taken off my shoulders. I had suffered with the guilt for so long; I had almost forgotten what it was like to live without it. He finally let me go and I leaned up against the wall, a little lightheaded. “Brock, I don’t understand. Why bring the Carnivores here? These people are good people.”

Brock sighed and went over to sit on a small table across from me, pushing his helmet out of the way. “I’ve been working with Benjamin for a very long time to protect the people here and to find you. I didn’t send the Carnivores. Thomas did.”

My head was starting to hurt, trying to figure everything out. “You said that you were here to help Thomas.” I said in a very low voice.

“I am. You see, working with the F.E.C. does have some advantages. Benjamin sent me there, while he remained here to search for you, between the two of us, we were certain that one of us would find you. After gaining their trust, I started to learn the process and coding that makes the visors work, basically they are all connected. While monitoring communications, I found out that they had found you and taken you to a location to be used for information extraction. I was able to find the specific visor that was going to be used on you, and the moment they put it on you, a secondary program kicked in, that I designed and blocked out all memories you had of me. It was safer this way until I could pin point your location. It made you forget about me, and everything that happened between us, for a short time. Sadly though, the effect isn’t permanent, which is why you started having hallucinations and memories come back to haunt you. I wanted to reach out and warn you, but if I did, it would have ruined everything I worked so hard for.”

His words made sense. Trust Brock to always be one step ahead of the game. He was a brilliant man, very humble and sweet. “And Thomas?”

“Something went wrong when Thomas Bell put on the visor. My belief is that either during his escape from the base with you, or his experimenting with it, it became damaged somehow, it’s not quite clear. When he put it on, it began to upload his memories, and download the information from the F.E.C. server all at the same time, jumbling them all together. Such a massive amount of data in a small period of time is enough to drive anyone insane. It is a highly unstable device, so if it's put on any other person, the results could be disastrous. Thomas ended up with the F.E.C. primary directives installed and operational, but with his own personal desires heightened to the max. The F.E.C. chose to let him proceed on this course because they knew that eventually it would bring about the downfall of the Messengers. I knew that I had to come here and stop him.” Brock stepped away from the table and gave me a serious look. “Dustin, I found it, there is a way to reverse the effects of the device.”

My eyes widened. “What? How!” I asked.

Brock shook his head. “We don't have time to get into that right now, Dustin. You're in danger. After I get you to safety, I will come back and confront Thomas. There is another rebel base not far from here which I've already contacted. There are men at the end of this tunnel, waiting to take you there. You will be safe.” He picked up his scarf and started to wrap it around his face. I reached out and grabbed his thin wrist, holding onto it tightly, he looked at me in astonishment.

“Stop.” Brock gazed at me with those innocent brown eyes questioningly. “I am not going anywhere yet, there are people here that the Carnivores will surely slaughter. Families! I can't leave them all behind.”

“Dustin, it's too risky leading all those people from the cells out through the tunnels. This entire place is being monitored. One or two people can make it safely but 50? No, I am not willing to risk it. I came back here to take care of Thomas, and to get you out. We need to move now.” I could tell that he was trying his best not to be overly harsh with me, but was rapidly losing patience. I had to tread carefully.

“Then let me do it. Give me the access card to the confinement cells and I will go release them. You can do what you have to, to shut Thomas down, but I am not willing to let all these people die.”

Brock slowly walked over to me and placed his hand over my heart. Even the lightest touch from his fingertips hurt and I tried my best to hide the discomfort. “You've changed, Dustin. I've known you for a long time now, we've shared almost everything that two people can share in their lives, but it is at this very moment that I feel I know you the best, and see the real soul inside of you.” His soft touch made me melt, and his words warmed my heart. Slowly, he pulled his hand back and walked over to the table, with his back towards me and ran his fingers over the slope of his Carnivore helmet. “Dustin?”

“Yes?”

“Tell me the truth. Don't lie to me. Be honest.” He tilted his head slightly and looked over his shoulder at me, picking up the helmet. The silhouette of his body in the dim light there with the helmet gripped tightly in his right hand was beautifully imposing, a bit of humanity in a world of twisted technology. The shadows seem to be lurking around him. “Why do you want to go back? Is it really for all those people?”

“Of course! They will all be assassinated one by one until Thomas gets what he wants out of them. I can’t just abandon them! I have the chance to save lives here.” I blurted out, and then suddenly fell quiet; I realized that he hadn't finished his thought.

“Or are you staying because you are looking for Benjamin?”

His words hit me hard, like a physical blow and I stood there in the semi darkness, completely speechless. I didn't know what to say. I didn't know what to think. Keeping his back toward me, Brock wrapped the scarf around his face and neck again, and then pulled on the helmet, becoming one with the darkness. Moving toward the door, he reached into his pocket and pulled out the key card and dropped it onto the floor in front of me. He then pulled the door open, stepped outside and slammed it shut, leaving me alone.


End file.
